OR
Things you don’t want to hear from the next pillow first thing in the morning while your eyes are still closed …
“my covid text says I tested positive”

We all fondly, or not, recall those back to school first essays on our summer vacations. This year those writings might prove to be a lesson in fragility and strength. A summer of yin and yang. As if pandemic times were not enough the summer of 2021 has proven to be a challenge beyond the norm.

In western Canada we faced record breaking heat for weeks on end bringing drought and dreaded locusts (grasshoppers for those on the urban southern prairie). Raging fires surround the globe and with it the smoke and air quality warnings are nothing compared to the devastation and loss to those evacuated or spending their summer go bags packed and on constant alert. Entire towns wiped out and forests lost along with precious wildlife.

So much doom surrounding our daily lives and just this past week now worldly earthquakes, hurricanes and Taliban take overs. For many it is hard to stay positive in this intense summer.

It is almost enough to make us forget we are still in a world-wide pandemic. 

That news story, fake news as many scoff, seems to be fading as double vaccinations are becoming the norm. Many people are boldly stepping back into daily life paying no attention to covid as they go about their day to day.

I, we, my household of 2, are not those people. We still mask, hand sanitize and pretty much stay home. We do not go anywhere we don’t need to. Minimal work not often face to face, outings only for necessities. We are not restaurant comfortable yet, nor have we ever had taken out or meals dashed to our front door. Our house has been void of any social and longs for a noisy chaotic big family gathering. We have had some extended family necessity rare back and forth as we navigate all the estate to-dos with the loss of my mother this past year and the quick onset of my father-in-law’s dementia, all a province away.

We go about life cautious and quietly staving off covid daily while trying to step through to some new normal. The past few weeks I have felt some personal pressure as my social media is full of people out there enjoying full on freedoms. Travel, restaurants, back yard barbeques, patio parties, pub crawls, concerts, and so much more. I am envious of the poster’s ability to throw caution to the wind and get on with life. Although double vaccinated in our household I am not that keen to jump back to full on fun. My husband is a little less leery as he has had to travel a province a way to help family many times this past year. I have not. 

My fears came to fruition this past week as he tested positive and Covid has now entered our home. This morning as it is finally lightly drizzling outside, he is still asleep on day 7 of fighting the virus. A healthy strong man, double vaccinated, and blown over by this virus. Around the clock sleeping, barely eating, chills, fevers, aches, cough and more and a week in. Our home in full on double isolation mode he is fighting it alone in his part of the house and me in mine desperately trying to work and not to be exposed.  
 Covid is real. As real as the fires, the smoke, the heat, the drought, and more. The difference is we can lessen the impact by being responsible fellow earth dwellers. Kindness and caring goes a long way. If it helps someone to not catch a virus, understand you might be unknowingly spreading it and consider staying home if you have symptoms and think about wearing a mask. If it helps the communities and firefighters desperately trying to save their homes then don’t go holiday amidst the desperate turmoil, don’t throw a burning cigarette out the car window, don’t light a campfire. Be kind to those working daily in the public and not knowing if they are exposed or not. These seem like natural human-kind things to participate in for the great of all, yet many do not see it that way.

Covid now in our home is firsthand proof that double jabs may not make you bullet proof. 

I truly understand how worn down many feel and are just wanting their social life back but when a healthy dual dose vaccinated covid-cautious man is now fighting the virus perhaps it is not quite yet the time for book club and movie nights. 

Say what you want, believe what you want, but be respectful that your rights are as equal as the next persons’. Choose kindness and caring. Choose respect. Stay socially diligent and try not spread a virus or a forest fire, or entitlement.

I am not certain why 2020 seemed like a personal hit as I know we all felt it in our own ways. In reflection it turns out it was both one of my best and one of my worst years ever. It was, for me, a year of yin and yang. For every action there was a positive reaction.
My husband started the year off losing his dependable job of 35+ years / I ended the year with record breaking earnings.
There was no far away beach and sun travel on the agenda / we bought a travel trailer and enjoyed our own beautiful part of the world we live in.  
I missed our kids and their families dearly / our grown kids proved to be wonderful hard working family units each thriving in their own homes and personal family time (what we hoped we taught them was important and that it is all about family, turned out to be true).  
I put in endless hours of work time / I managed more creative time this past year than ever with dedicated time to write, create, paint and more.
I missed the social side of life / I feel more connected to that which is dear to me.
My health challenge was paramount given the focus on underlying conditions and risks / I have practiced razor sharp focus resulting in one of my healthiest years.
I lost my mother this past fall / I have gained a new tighter closeness with my brothers and sister.
It was a year of lessons in glass half full or glass half empty. For me it was both and how I approached the moment/day/week/month/year was a lesson in patience. When the negative showed up, I strived to sit tight, ride it out and wait for the counter reaction of the positive. I learned it always shows up if you give it time and are watching for it.
Uncertainty has become the new normal, but the reality is it should always have been the norm. This past year of upheaval, change, re-focusing, priority shifting, and the future unknown is in the simplest of terms a big reality check. All we really have is the moment. We can lament the past and plan the future, but nothing is as relevant as today.

Happy New Year!
Michelle